Good morning! That stegosaurus fossil auction we mentioned on Wednesday? It didn’t go for $6 million. Billionaire hedge fund king Ken Griffin bought it for $45 million — a fossil world record. Imagine having stegosaurus money.

Speaking of kings, King Charles III had a little snafu with his fancy purple robe as he sat on the throne (wearing his crown) for the State Opening of Parliament. Just a little reminder that European monarchs are still, y’know, monarchs.

2024

🏛️ He’s in, he’s… still in — for now

He’s up. He’s down. He’s in. He’s out still in… And still in. But that might not last much longer. A new report claims Joe Biden is “receptive” to the idea of dropping out of the race based on polling that shows he can’t win (that polling isn’t pretty).

Will Biden drop out? Another says he's "soul searching" (a downgrade from his previous "defiance"). The strongest report, however, claims the president could drop out as soon as “this weekend.”

• Campaign spokesperson TJ Ducklo called that “baseless conjecture.”

• Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer, and Democratic House leader Hakeem Jeffries have all made it clear to Biden that they’re Team Go.

One thing that might push him out? Cash. Funds from big donors have all but disappeared as he waffles on whether to stay in the race.

Covid: President Biden tested positive a day after speaking at the NAACP convention this week. He's receiving treatment and reportedly doing well as he rests at home in Delaware.

• His diagnosis is raising eyebrows on Team Go after he said earlier on Wednesday that a medical diagnosis could push him out of the race.

• This presumably happened naturally. There’s no evidence to suggest that Vice President Harris paid someone to cough on him.

• She's out campaigning this week as Biden recovers.

Should Harris take over, she'd need to quickly name a vice presidential nominee. “The Hill” takes a look at which middle-aged white guy she might go with.

Team Trump has been busy at the Republican National Convention this week.

• Donald Trump accepted his party’s nomination. His plan for day one? “Drill baby drill and close our borders” to illegal immigration.

• Freshman Sen. JD Vance accepted the VP nod and spoke of being raised by his Mamaw.

• Hulk Hogan also spoke as Trump seeks the critical “80s wrestling fans” demo.

Because the world is what it is, a Morning Consult poll found that one-fifth of voters think the Trump assassination attempt was staged.

And here’s a quick look at some other news:

• 🚨 The former CEO of the company that helped Trump Media go public was sued by the SEC for securities fraud related to the deal.

• 🚫 Speaker of the House Mike Johnson is consideringimpeaching Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle if she doesn't step down. Cheatle says she plans "to stay on."

• 😡 China's mad again after President Biden signed a law pushing Beijing to negotiate with Tibetans seeking independence.

POLITICS

🔵 Despite Biden's sagging numbers, Senate Democrats are looking good in a new round of polls from YouGov. Their candidates lead in every swing-state Senate race, including Arizona by 7%, Michigan by 9%, Nevada by 7%, Pennsylvania by 12%, and Wisconsin by 7%.

🔴The RNC isn’t quite drama-free this year. Scandal-tarred Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) interrupted a CNN interview with ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy to make fun of him. In response, Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) called Gaetz “tubby” and “a little b*tch.” Gaetz later got made fun of by well, everyone, for looking like a half-melted action figure from Temu.

⚪ Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s campaign is denying rumors that he’s dropping out of the race. Kennedy recently canceled a host of events and met with Donald Trump at the RNC.

🔵Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), recently convicted of selling his soul to Egypt and Qatar, is resisting calls to resign. If he continues to refuse while he appeals, the Senate will consider expelling him. In that case, Menendez would be the first senator expelled since 14 Confederates got the boot in 1862.

🔴 Two guys who were charged with and acquitted for trying to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) are running for local office. One wants to be a town trustee, but the other has his sights set on sheriff.

TRIVIA

If President Biden drops out of the race, Democrats could be looking at a contested convention next month. Before primaries came along, that was the norm. But it hasn’t happened in quite a while. When was the most recent Democratic or Republican convention where the presidential nomination was actively fought over?

Hint: The loser was elected president four years later.

WORLD

🇮🇹Italy: An Italian court ordered a journalist to pay Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni €5,000 for making fun of her height on social media (she’s 5’3”). The judge compared the comments to “body shaming.” Add "making fun of politicians" to the list of sports America is the GOAT at.

🇰🇷 South Korea: Sue Mi Terry, an ex-CIA and White House national security analyst, was charged with being a secret agent for South Korea. She allegedly leaked government info and helped them access her U.S. government contacts. Her husband Max Boot is, unironically, a Washington Post national security and foreign agent expert.

🇺🇸United States: The White House announced another round of student loan forgiveness. Aaaand a court blocked the entire program (not just this round). The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, one notch below the Supreme Court, put the SAVE Plan on ice while the case challenging its legality works its way through the courts.

BRIEFS

• A European neo-Nazi was indicted for planning to kill Jewish kids in Brooklyn by dressing as, um, Santa and giving them poisoned candy

• Some annoying "Just Stop Oil" activists who lie down and block roads got slapped with four-to-five-year prison sentences in the U.K.

• The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, took a public dip in the newly sewage-free Seine River to prove it's safe ahead of the Olympics

• Israel's parliament voted to reject the creation of a Palestinian state days before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses Congress

• Ukraine's biggest European supporter, Germany, will cut its military aid to Kyiv in half (~$4.4 billion) next year amid budget cuts

• German centrist Ursula von der Leyen won a second term as president of the European Commission, the E.U.'s executive branch

QUOTE

SNACKS

🎤Gambino: Donald Glover will retire his Childish Gambino persona — which he compared to Michael Scott — after his final album, "Bando Stone & the New World," drops today.

☺️ Good News: Decades of effort are paying off as conservationists try to save the critically endangered Siamese crocodile from extinction. Cambodia recently welcomed 60 baby crocs into the world (a 21st-century record).

📷 Tribes:Check out these wild pics of uncontacted tribes in the Amazon. South America's Uncontacted Frontier region has the highest concentration on Earth.

ANSWER

In 1976, President Gerald Ford received a stiff primary challenge from former California Gov. Ronald Reagan. By convention time, nobody had enough delegates to win. They duked it out on the convention floor for a few days. Ford won that fight but lost to Jimmy Carter. Reagan had his revenge in 1980.